Patrol aircraft, submarine to face each other in Navy museum

Kolkata: The Indian Navy will "pit the hunter and the hunted against each other" when it puts the Tu-142 maritime patrol aircraft in front of a submarine at its museum in Visakhapatnam as part of the celebrations of Eastern Naval Command's golden jubilee year.

"The Navy's Submarine Wing based in Vizag, that came into being in 1967, will also be celebrating its golden jubilee this year," Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Naval Command, Vice Admiral HCS Bisht said here.

"The Eastern Naval command, which was formed on March one, 1968 will commence celebrations of its golden jubilee this year," he told reporters on the sidelines of a programme to unveil the statue of Netaji Subash Chandra Bose at INS Netaji Subhas, the Naval headquarter for West Bengal.

In December, President Ram Nath Kovind is scheduled to present the President's Colours to the Submarine Wing of the Navy, he added.

As part of the celebrations, the Navy will be placing one of its iconic Tu-142 anti-submarine aircraft at its Kurusura submarine museum at Visakhapatnam pitting it just in front of the submarine which is already on display there.

"Thus we will be pitting the hunter and the hunted in front of each other signifying the roles they played," Bisht said, adding that this display will mark the activities of the aircraft as well as the submarine.

"For the purpose, a TU-142 aircraft was dismantled in 80 different parts and again assembled at the site," the FOC-in-C of Eastern Naval Command said.

The foundation stone for placing the aircraft will be laid later this month or in early October, he said.

It will be displayed at R K Beach at Visakhapatnam, where the submarine INS Kursura is placed.

The Indian Navy's workhorse long-range maritime patrol and anti-submarine aircraft TU-142M, was de-inducted in March this year after 29 years of service.

The Russian-made turboprop aircraft, aptly named the 'Albatross,' was inducted into the Indian Navy in 1988.